Vemkar (Վէմքար) is the digital resource hub of the Ministries Department of the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church of America.  Our Diocesan mission is to serve and assist the faithful of the Armenian Church both within and beyond our Diocese, which includes offering educational materials not just for parishes, and for lay as well as clergy leadership but for all Armenian Church faithful to utilize for spiritual edification, programing  and development. To that end, Diocesan Ministries staff members work creatively to teach and make relevant how the Armenian people have traditionally and uniquely received, experienced, understood, absorbed, and expressed the Christian faith within their specific historical and cultural context, how we developed an understanding of how to properly live the Christian life, and, ultimately, how we have been indelibly marked by Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Our Church

For almost 2,000 years, the Armenian Church has grown in the mystery of the Gospel as the person of Jesus Christ, the “Good News” who can be known, loved, and celebrated. Tradition tells us that among the twelve Apostles, Sts. Thaddeus and Bartholomew brought the Gospel of Jesus Christ to Armenia.

Following the evangelistic efforts of these “First Illuminators,” the faith in Armenia grew due to the early presence of other Christians. Eventually it was the evangelization efforts of St. Gregory the Illuminator that established Christianity as the official religion of Armenia around the year 301 with the baptizing of King Drtad, the royal household, and the princely families. Prior to being chosen as the first Catholicos, St. Gregory had a vision where he saw Christ descend and strike the earth with a golden hammer. It was on that very place St. Gregory had the mother cathedral built and named after the Mother of God. The site was named “Etchmiadzin,” meaning “descent of the Only-Begotten,” referring to Christ as the Son of God.

Among the many things we believe and practice in the Armenian Church, it is the Nicene Creed that summarizes our Christian faith regarding who God is and who we are in relation to him. It unites Christians in common faith as a single worshipping body ensuring we grow together in the true and right knowledge of God. In Armenian, the Creed is called Havadamk, referring to its first word meaning, “we believe.”

The Armenian Church of America was officially established by Catholicos Mkrtich Khrimian in 1898. Due to growth, the Church has since been divided into Eastern and Western dioceses, each with their own respective jurisdictions. Within the Eastern Diocese, which ranges from the East Coast through the Midwest, there are approximately 63 organized and mission parishes. The head of the Eastern Diocese is the Primate (Aratchnort)—currently Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan, who shepherds the faithful of his diocese and serving as president of the Diocesan Council, governs its affairs.